Cold Iron
by Mikkeneko
Summary: Kurogane tries to teach Fai swordfighting. It doesn't go well. Set during the Yama arc; Kurogane/Fai. Updated: Two more installments. This fic is now complete.
1. Cold Steel

Title: Cold Steel  
Rating: PG  
Warnings: Kurogane/Fai.  
Summary: Kurogane tries to teach Fai swordfighting. It doesn't go well.  
Author's Notes: Set during the Yama period.

* * *

The sword clattered to the ground again, and Fai folded his arms over his chest, narrowing his eyes defiantly at his would-be teacher. "No," he said firmly.

Kurogane ground his teeth, and reached down to pick up the weapon. They'd been in Yama for over a month already, and so far the only word of _Nihongo_ that Fai had seemed to really learn was that one. And he seemed to use it more regularly than anything to piss Kurogane off. "And I'm telling you, _yes,_" he growled, stalking towards Fai. Fai backed away before him, blue eyes narrow and defiant. "Look, we're going to be a part of Yasha's army whether we like it or not. That means that you have to at least make a token effort to act like a real warrior!"

Fai shook his head stubbornly, and Kurogane snarled under his breath. Without Mokona to translate for them, Kurogane was left to guess what the hell was going on in that fuzzy head.

He knew that Fai had the skills of a warrior -- the way he moved, the ease with which he defended himself in combat clearly displayed that. Still, he'd gotten the idea from the previous worlds that Fai didn't like to use violence -- not even in self-defense, stupid as that was. It wasn't something a man like Kurogane could understand, but it was a consistent pattern to the mage's behavior. Fai didn't like to fight, and he refused to carry a weapon.

Which was too damn _bad_, because they were newcomers in a strange territory, and walking a very fine line for that not to become _hostile_ territory. They were too vulnerable here, without knowing the language or the culture and without any way to get themselves out if things went into the midden in a hurry. If they were going to survive and find the kids and get out of here, they had to join Yasha's army and gain his protection, and if that was going to happen, then Fai was going to have to learn to _use the damn sword_.

But to start with, he would have to get Fai to _take_ the sword, and so far he'd refused to even touch it.

For the thousandth time he wished they hadn't become separated from the others -- and not just because Mokona's absence made this whole layover a logistical nightmare. He missed the kids. He'd never planned to become a teacher in the first place, but if he had to teach the sword, at least Syaoran was genuinely motivated to learn and showed some innate spark of talent. Hell, even if he hadn't, he'd be a hundred times a better student than Fai just because he _respected_ the sword. And, for that matter, respected Kurogane, which Fai obviously didn't.

"Take the sword," he growled, holding the sword out towards Fai, hilt-first.

Fai put his hands behind his back like a little kid and stepped back, then _smiled_ at Kurogane, grinned like this was all some giant joke that Kurogane was putting on for his amusement. "No," he said again, sounding even more like a stubborn two-year-old. "No sword."

"Damn it!" Patience exhausted, Kurogane lunged forward and took the mage by the shoulders. When the startled man put out his arms in involuntary defense, Kurogane grabbed Fai's right wrist, pressed the hilt of the sword into his hand, and wrapped his own hand firmly around Fai's to hold it there. "Just take the goddamn sword!"

Fai gasped and his arm twitched when Kurogane's hand covered his, and then they both froze in place. Fai's head was slightly lowered, hair hiding his eyes, and he was close enough to Kurogane's chest that his breath misted softly on Kurogane's collarbone. After a moment, Fai's rigid shoulders relaxed, and he muttered something under his breath in his own language.

Kurogane had no idea what he'd said, so he ignored it. "Now," he said, his own voice soft in the sudden stillness between them, "you do it like this."

Carefully he pulled Fai towards him, moving around to stand directly behind the other man, Fai fitting neatly into the curve of his arms. He reached down and took Fai's wrist hand in his left hand, and Fai willingly moved with him as he pulled him into the proper stance.

"Like this," he whispered into Fai's ear, and moved them both through the kata.

Fai's body was... amazing, Kurogane decided, was the only word for it. He'd observed the catlike grace of Fai's movements, the speed and dexterity with which he moved on foot and in the air, but he'd never had an opportunity to come this close before. His movements were smooth as an oiled machine, and his limbs were light against Kurogane's; he followed along with every subtle movement and cue as Kurogane guided them through the movements like a silent dance. Kurogane's steady, even breathing stirred the light stands of Fai's hair, and he could smell the scent of his body, this close.

He didn't care what Fai's reasons were. He wanted Fai to fight by his side, he wanted to see that deadly speed and precision applied to his own art; he wanted _this,_ the balance and grace of the two of them moving in tandem. And if he had to hold his hand over Fai's every step of the way to accomplish that, he wouldn't regret it at all.

They both stood motionless for a long moment after the completion of the move, and then Kurogane felt Fai's hand slip from his as the hilt of the sword was pushed into his hand. The smaller man took a step away and then turned, face to face, and met his eyes. Fai's breathing was heavy and irregular, and Kurogane wondered if the wizard had been as affected by their closeness as he was.

Fai was still very close, almost within Kurogane's arms, and it would have been very easy to just lean down and kiss the hell out of him. Before he could, though, Fai slowly raised his right hand to chest level between them, palm up.

Kurogane glanced down, and then recoiled. Fai's hand was covered heel to fingertips in an angry red burn. Kurogane swore and grabbed his hand, shifting his grip to Fai's wrist when he hissed in pain. "Shit! What the hell happened to your hand?"

Fai couldn't answer, of course, but the unsteady pattern of his breathing quickened as Kurogane inspected the burn. The worst of it was across the palm, with angry red bars laying across the inside of his fingers, flecks of bright blood oozing out of the cracked skin. The pattern looked familiar, and Kurogane shot a horrified look down at the sword he was holding. The size and shape of the burn exactly matched the shape of the hilt.

It took Kurogane a moment to make the connection, but he wasn't stupid. The sword was steel -- _iron_ -- and Fai was a mage. Even if he refused to ever use his magic, it was still part of him, an intrinsic part of his flesh.

He looked back into Fai's face; a habitual half-smile quirked his lips, but his eyes were solemn. "No sword, Kuro-sama," he said with a quiet finality, then wriggled his fingers and pulled his hand free of Kurogane's.

Kurogane stood staring at his back as he walked away. At last, he sheathed the sword and turned away. He'd have to come up with some other way to keep the mage alive.

* * *

~end.

Author's notes: This was just an idea I had about Fai and iron -- not to imply that he's a faerie or anything, simply that magic and cold iron react badly on contact, sort of like putting a spoon in the microwave. After the idea occurred to me, I tried to recall if there's any place in the series where we see Fai deliberately handle iron or steel. The only one I can think of offhand was the lamp-post that Kurogane broke in the Kiishim's room in Koryou, and we have no idea what kind of metal that was made of.


	2. Chains of Infinity

Title: Chains of Infinity  
Rating:  
Warnings:  
Summary: Things were bad enough in Infinity, this just added one more problem to the pile.  
Author's Notes: This is a sequel of sorts to Cold Iron... I didn't actually intend to write it, but some people on the kurofai comm pointed out the chains in Infinity, and that got me thinking. :)

* * *

The Master of the Games wasn't the only one to notice; Kurogane knew Fai's moves better than anyone in any world by now (save one.) He kept an eye over all of them the best he could, in the ring; the bulk of the team's offensive strategy usually fell on him, and didn't give him much time to stand around watching his teammates. But he couldn't fail to notice that Fai's movements were stiff, jerky, slower than normal.

It took him a while to make the connection; other things were taking up his attention. The princess. Mokona, who was growing more despondent every day it was trapped in their rooms and wouldn't it just be the icing on the cake if it somehow lost its ability to do magic because of that? The boy with Syaoran's face, who was familiar and alien at the same time and whom Kurogane wasn't completely sure he could trust. He thought so, but hell, what did he know? He'd thought he could trust Syaoran, too.

Even when it came to Fai, there were other things that were always in the way, distracting him. The vampire thing was always there now, of course. He'd thought perhaps Fai was still feeling pain from the transformation that had so racked him with agony. The anger, the resentment, the hurt. The betrayal. There were so many things wrong with Fai now that Kurogane thought he could be forgiven for letting this one slip his mind.

After one of the matches Kurogane and Syaoran sat getting their breath back in the room behind the throne, cooling down. Fai was already gone; he'd shed the collar and chains of the game as soon as they'd left the board, and when Kurogane thought about it, he realized Fai always had.

That's when it hit him, and he shoved himself to his feet, the stone he'd been using to hone his sword falling to the floor with a clatter. The boy looked at him with wide eyes, hesitating, unsure of whether to ask. "That _idiot,"_ was all Kurogane said by way of explanation, shoved his sword back in its sheath, and walked out.

He caught up with Fai in the hallway near their rooms; dingy and dimly lit, no one would have reason to come back here except those staying in the complex for the matches. Fai turned his head, then turned around to see who was coming up on his blind side; he relaxed from his defensive crouch when he recognized Kurogane, but the wariness was still there. It always was, these days. "Kurogane-san," he greeted him, with a shallow inclination of his head. "Did you want something?"

"Why haven't you told the princess?" Kurogane demanded, stepping forward, keeping his voice pitched low.

Fai's single eye widened, but he gained control again quickly. "Told her what?" he asked innocently. "Isn't it you who have something to say?"

"Don't be cute with me," Kurogane growled, and stepped forward again, pinning Fai back against the wall. He was still wearing the metal cuffs that the chain attached to on his wrist; he raised one arm, and saw Fai flinch slightly away. "These are made of iron. Iron burns you."

"What are you talking about, Kurogane?" Fai asked with a wide, unfelt smile. He spread his arms wide and tilted his head back, showing pale, unmarked skin where the collar and chains usually rested. "See? Not a burn mark in sight."

"I said don't be cute!" Kurogane repeated. "You're part vampire now -- the vampire blood is healing you. That was the whole point of this, or don't you remember?"

He was shouting by the end of that, the need to keep this quiet forgotten. The smile faded from Fai's face, and he stared at Kurogane, his eye cold and hard. "Maybe," he said finally. "But frankly, I don't see what business of yours it is either way."

"It's my business to know when my partners and teammates are hurt," Kurogane growled. "And even more so when they're lying to me."

That was a cruel and unfair thing to say, and he knew it, but he still preferred the angry flash of Fai's eye and the dangerous set of his mouth to the cold blankness that came before. "Well, what would you have me do about it?" Fai shot back. "It's all part of the game. We can't exactly go to the game masters and ask them to change the rules just because one of the chess pieces has a... skin allergy. Do you want to win? So do I. So there's nothing to be done."

"Do you think the princess wants to see you hurt this way?" Kurogane asked, switching from one unfair tactic to the next. "She'd never force you into this if she knew what it was doing to you."

"No," Fai said. "No, she wouldn't. Do you plan to tell her, Kurogane-san? Do you think she needs to be weighed down with more guilt, more distractions right now? How do you think that will affect our chances of winning the game?"

Kurogane's frown deepened thunderously, but he knew the vampire was right. Still, that didn't mean he had to like it. "Isn't there anything you can do?" he said, changing the subject. "Wear padding between it and your skin, or something?"

Fai laughed, the sound startled and painful. "It doesn't quite work that way, Kurogane-san."

Kurogane didn't see why the hell not, but he wasn't a mage and Fai was, so he didn't argue. Fai sighed, rubbing the side of his face with one hand, the anger running out of his face and making him look only tired and a little ill. "Look, it's not really that bad. My magic... my magic is only half the strength it used to be, so the reaction is only half as strong, too. And it heals back to normal after only a few seconds, so it's not like..."

Kurogane grabbed Fai's arm and pulled him back, pushing him flat against the wall. "I didn't strike a bargain for vampire blood just so that you could keep being hurt over and over again!"

Fai made an effort to pull his arm free; when Kurogane hung on, he suddenly shoved with a strength that was wholly unhuman. The force of it sent Kurogane stumbling back to impact against the wall, and the two of them stared at each other, for a long and silent moment, in the dim hallway.

Finally Fai spoke. "If you wanted to spare me pain, then you made the wrong choice in Tokyo," he said, voice shaking slightly. He turned and went into the bedroom, shutting the door firmly behind him.

* * *

~end.


	3. In the Blood

Title: In the Blood  
Rating: PG-13  
Spoilers: This fic is set in Nihon, and because it's an AU already, I'm going to declare that the boys got at least ONE day of friggin' rest between when Kurogane got his new arm and Seishirou crashed the party.  
Author's Notes: In case there's anyone in the TRC fandom who doesn't already know the meaning of Kurogane's name, it means 'Black Steel' -- which would have been off-limits to Fai while he still had his magic. So what Fai saying here is that now that he's free of the burdens and secrets of his past, he's free to touch _Kurogane_ in a way that he wasn't, before.

* * *

The moon showed it was well after midnight, but Kurogane wasn't sleeping. Partly because his right shoulder throbbed dully where the artificial arm met the skin, but mostly because he had too damn much to think about.

Like the fact that he _had_ a right arm again.

Like the fact that he was home.

Like the fact that his companions, the kid and the princess and the manjuu and _Fai_, were all here with him.

As though his thoughts had summoned him up, he recognized the aura of the figure standing in the hall a moment before the shouji door cracked open.

"I wondered if you'd show up," Kurogane said without looking away from the window.

The wizard -- no, he supposed he couldn't call him that any more -- paused, and then came the rest of the way into the room. "Well, I wasn't sure if you were asleep," he said, a smile in his voice.

"No." Kurogane turned to look at him. The man was dressed in the same light yukata that he'd been wearing when Kurogane had awoken; it looked strange on him, alien, and he moved a little awkwardly in it. It occurred to Kurogane to wonder how much, if anything, he was wearing under it; he looked away, embarrassed.

It didn't help when the vampire crossed the room the rest of the way and sat down on the edge of Kurogane's bed. "I thought I'd do a little visiting," he said, his voice light and careless. Kurogane wasn't naive enough to think that_visiting_ in his bedroom in the middle of the night was anything other than what it sounded like, and any doubt there might have been was dispelled when Fai leaned over, cupped his hand over Kurogane's jaw, and kissed him.

Half a dozen different feelings vied for space in Kurogane's mind, the uppermost being relief that Fai was going to take the initiative and that he would not need to ask. Kurogane raised his left hand to cover Fai's, tangling their fingers together, and leaned back a little. "So," he said, and cleared his throat a little. "Am I forgiven?"

Fai looked a little surprised, and his smile faded. He looked down at their joined hands. "Funny you should say that," he said, a touch of uncertainty in his voice despite the attempt at levity. "I actually came here to ask you the same thing."

It was hard to know how to answer that, how to pack so much frustation and fear and anger and grief and betrayal and love into a simple articulate phrase, so answered in the only way he knew how; "Don't be stupid," he said, and pulled the wizard towards him.

Fai pushed him back against the blankets, climbing fully on top of the bed to straddle either side of Kurogane's legs and lean over him. Kurogane went willingly enough, still tired and depleted from the last world; the Piffle world technology had replaced the lost arm, but it hadn't done anything about the blood loss that had nearly killed him.

The arm... Reminded, Kurogane bit back a curse as he forced his right arm to drop back against the bed. He wanted to touch -- to return touches -- to hold Fai's body against his, but he could not. He'd had enough of hurting Fai unintentionally, and besides, he didn't think burning his lover was going to do much to enhance the mood.

The other man sensed his hesitation and flinch, though, because he leaned back, his eye wide and expression serious in the moonlight. "Kuro-sama?" he asked in a concerned tone. "Is something wrong? Is..." He hesitated, his eyes going down to Kurogane's shoulder. "Is the arm hurting you?"

"No," Kurogane replied, more anger in his voice than he would have liked. "I don't want to hurt _you._ This arm -- it's steel, you know that."

Fai smiled; a slow, sweet smile that spread across his face like a sunrise. He leaned down, hands braced on the mattress on either side of Kurogane's shoulders, until his forehead touched Kurogane's. "Kuro-chan," he murmured, voice full of gentle humor, "Think."

"Think about what?" Kurogane replied gruffly, trying to cover for the fact that he couldn't think very clearly about anything right now with Fai's body covering his like this.

"Why did iron burn me?"

"Because you're a mage," Kurogane said immediately, then stopped, confused. "Well... I mean, I don't know! You're the one who understands it, you explain it to me."

"Because of my magic," Fai corrected him. "Because magic was a part of me, and it doesn't react well to iron... but what did I give the witch in payment for this arm?"

"Your --" Kurogane broke off and stared up at Fai's single, warmly glinting, golden eye. "You mean..."

Fai nodded, the pleased smile growing on his face. "I'm just like a normal person, now," he said. "I can touch iron, and it doesn't bother me at all." In demonstration, he laid his hand gently on the metal arm. Kurogane couldn't feel anything through it, but just watching the contact sent a shock up his spine.

"You'll never be a normal person," Kurogane grumbled, but he was too distracted to put much rancor into it.

Fai leaned his weight on Kurogane's arm, pressing his shoulder back into the mattress. His other hand slid behind Kurogane's neck, moved up to tangle in the hair behind his head. "I can touch..." He pulled Kurogane up to meet him in a kiss. "All I want to, now," he whispered into Kurogane's mouth.

And so could he. Kurogane brought his hands -- both hands, the warm and the cold -- to settle on Fai's hips, and returned the kiss.

* * *

~end.


	4. Epilogue: Where Are They Now?

This was written for faren_maddox in response to my Timestamp/Where Are They Now meme, where people could choose a story and request to see what happens five years later. But I figured I might as well post it up as an epilogue here as well.

* * *

They were back in Piffle World, at the mercy (well, she called it 'hospitality') of Miss Daidouji. She'd welcomed them and bid them to stay, at her residence, for as long as they needed... and on learning that Kurogane's artificial arm had been destroyed in the battle with Fei Wong Reed, she'd immediately set Piffle Corporation's medical R&D department to the task of making him a new one.

He'd protested that they had no currency, nothing of value that could be used to repay such a valuable gift; but she only laughed. That galled Kurogane, kept him awake late at night while waiting for the new components to 'integrate' with his nerves.

A beeping sound at his door indicated that someone on the other side was pressing the 'admit' button, and given the lateness of the hour, it could only really be one person. He sighed and raised his voice, making a painful attempt to sit up before flopping back down against the pillows. "Unlock," he commanded the room's computer, and the light level raised slightly as the door flashed green and slid silently open.

Fai padded in on quiet feet, wearing a bathrobe with the Piffle Princess logo patterned brazenly all over the fabric. "Kuro-chan should be sleeping, this late at night," he scolded as he perched lightly on the edge of the bed.

"That's a hell of a thing for you to say, considering you were the one who showed up in the middle of the night," Kurogane grumbled.

"If you were asleep like you should have been, you wouldn't have even heard the tone, and I would have gone away," Fai pointed out, scootching closer to Kurogane and starting to run his fingers lightly over Kurogane's right forearm. "But no, Kuro-stubborn is still awake, because he won't take his medicine like a good boy."

Kurogane looked away; he could hardly argue. "I don't like how it makes me feel all spacey," he grumbled. "Pain doesn't bother me. Being out of my head does."

"But something is bothering you," Fai said gently. "You've been in a terrible mood all day, ever since Tomoyo convinced you to let them start installing the new arm. This one is supposed to be better for you, you know. Since they have the chance this time to install it to fit properly, it won't hurt you or bleed like the last one did. It'll be stronger and lighter; you'll hardly be able to tell the difference from your real one. So what's wrong?"

The last words came out plaintively, and Kurogane felt bad; he knew that the subject of his missing arm upset Fai badly, since Kurogane had sacrificed it in payment for his life back in Ceres. He'd been the one to pay for the first arm, sacrificing the last of his magic; and he'd been the one to argue most enthusiastically for the replacement. He knew it was important to Fai, but that was exactly why...

Kurogane sighed and reached across his body, throwing away the white canvas cover that the doctors had draped over it before they left. Right now the arm was only a skeleton, only the first structural joists and movement cables installed. Even it responded to his thoughts, however, twitching and clicking when he tried to will his arm to move. Bare metal gleamed in the dim overhead lights. "You have your magic back again," he explained. "And I don't want this if it's going to keep us apart."

Fai pulled back and leveled a Look at him; halfway between an angry glare and a chastening stare of disapproval. "What?" Kurogane demanded, not feeling up to Fai and his mercurial moods tonight.

In response, Fai reached over and placed his hand on Kurogane's metal arm. "What the hell are you doing?" Kurogane demanded; he tried to move away, but Fai had him trapped between his body and the edge of the bed and he had nowhere to go. "Stop it!"

"Kuro-chama is in pain. Shouldn't I be too?" Fai countered.

"It doesn't work that way, dammit!" Kurogane got his other hand up between their bodies, and shoved Fai back. "This isn't some kind of competition to see who can be the biggest martyr! Just because I'm suffering doesn't mean you have to!"

Slowly, Fai sat back with his hands folded in his lap. The dim lights showed up the red mark on Fai's hand, before it slowly faded back into pale white. "Well, that's true for you too, isn't it?" he asked in a level tone. "Kuro-stupid shouldn't make himself suffer just because it would be more convenient for me."

Kurogane let out a huff of exasperation as he dropped his head back onto the pillow. His head was throbbing, as it often did after coming up against Fai's logic. "Don't do shit like that," he grumbled.

Fai smiled and leaned over him again - scrupulously avoiding the metal arm - and placed a palm over Kurogane's forehead. "Don't fret so much about me, Kuro-worrywart," he said softly. "Dr. Arathi says that the outer layers of the arm will be plastic and 'fleshtoner,' whatever that means - at any rate, they're not metallic. And for the rest of it, well, we can be careful."

"Hm," Kurogane said, not wanting to admit that he hadn't thought that far. With the first arm, Fuuma had apologized for it being 'incomplete,' but he hadn't translated that forward to thinking this new one wouldn't be. "Whatever."

Fai chuckled and sat back a bit, lightly brushing Kurogane's hair away from his face. "Kuro-sweaty is a mess," he said teasingly. "The sheets are all soaked with the sweat of your pointless macho stoicness. How about a sponge bath and I can change the linens, hmmm?"

"Yeah, all right," Kurogane grunted, hiding his relief at the thought of being clean and dry. He didn't object, either, when Fai leaned forward again and claimed his lips in a kiss.


End file.
